Just thought I'd share that I really greatly enjoyed the film Astro Boy!, much more than I anticipated given the mixed reviews. I've seen several movies this summer, some good and some bad, but I can honestly say this is the most *fun* I've had at the movies in quite a while. It's just a really great story (for kids and adults alike) and a wild ride - fun, touching, and just well put together with a fantastic orchestral score as well (just got the music off iTunes as I like it so much).
I should say I may be slightly biased as I'm a big fan of anime (Japanese animation for those not familiar) in general, and while I knew Astro Boy was a classic from the 1960's (and one of the very first true anime series influencing everything after it), I actually knew very little about the character til seeing the movie. I was a bit worried from some reviews that it would be too Americanized (which is usually never a good thing with anime), but I certainly feel I got a sense of the character, and it actually got me interested enough to start checking out some of the older source material as I'm finding I'm quite a fan of the character.
One of the criticisms that I've seen with some of the reviews is they keep saying it doesn't do anything "new". I think the reviewers who feel it derivative need to realize Astro Boy did much of this basically *first* and had a lot of concepts copied by later fiction, and this is a retelling of that first origin story. It's not *supposed* to radically change the character, and I found it quite creative actually. It does have some politics involved, but it's not too heavy handed IMO (even though I happen to agree with most of 'em), and just a great summer movie. I know it's doing a bit better in some other countries than the States, where it's not doing too well, but I truly hope it ends up doing well enough to merit a sequel.
At any rate, I'm happy I got introduced to the character and universe, because I have a lot of source material to explore now either way. =)
If you're a kid at heart (or have kids that enjoy this type of touching action adventurer), highly recommended!
I should say I may be slightly biased as I'm a big fan of anime (Japanese animation for those not familiar) in general, and while I knew Astro Boy was a classic from the 1960's (and one of the very first true anime series influencing everything after it), I actually knew very little about the character til seeing the movie. I was a bit worried from some reviews that it would be too Americanized (which is usually never a good thing with anime), but I certainly feel I got a sense of the character, and it actually got me interested enough to start checking out some of the older source material as I'm finding I'm quite a fan of the character.
One of the criticisms that I've seen with some of the reviews is they keep saying it doesn't do anything "new". I think the reviewers who feel it derivative need to realize Astro Boy did much of this basically *first* and had a lot of concepts copied by later fiction, and this is a retelling of that first origin story. It's not *supposed* to radically change the character, and I found it quite creative actually. It does have some politics involved, but it's not too heavy handed IMO (even though I happen to agree with most of 'em), and just a great summer movie. I know it's doing a bit better in some other countries than the States, where it's not doing too well, but I truly hope it ends up doing well enough to merit a sequel.
At any rate, I'm happy I got introduced to the character and universe, because I have a lot of source material to explore now either way. =)
If you're a kid at heart (or have kids that enjoy this type of touching action adventurer), highly recommended!
